5.24.2010

charles djou wins hawaii congressional seat in special election

For the first time in two decades, a Republican is representing Hawaii in Congress. The GOP is celebrating a victory on Obama's "home turf," where Charles Djou has won the special election to fill the vacancy in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District: Djou wins U.S. House seat.

Djou won close to 40 percent of the vote in the mail-in special election, beating out Democrats Colleen Hanabusa, with 31 percent, and Ed Case, 28 percent. Yes -- note that the majority of voters in the district supported Democratic candidates. It was race that created a deep divide within the party:

Democrats will be looking to regroup and recapture the seat behind a single candidate in November.

The party will have to overcome a divide that many, including the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, blamed for handing the election to the GOP.

Most of Hawaii's Democratic establishment, led by U.S. Sen. Dan Inouye, backed Hanabusa, the state Senate president, while also exhibiting an open dislike of Case for his failed 2006 Senate run against U.S. Sen. Dan Akaka. National Democrats appeared to favor Case as the more electable candidate but shied away from picking either.